FACE Report: Truck driver killed after vehicle rollaway

Case report: #20KY040
Issued by: Kentucky State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Program
Date of incident: Sept. 22, 2020

A 52-year-old commercial truck driver was killed after being struck by the tractor-trailer he had been driving. After arriving at a customer facility and unloading his freight, the driver loaded his truck for a return trip. By the time he had weighed his vehicle at the customer’s scale, the facility had closed, so he selected a parking spot in a nearby lot to spend the night. According to video from the truck’s window-mounted dash camera, the driver observed debris near the front passenger tire, exited the truck and knelt to remove the debris. He did not set the parking brake before exiting the vehicle, which rolled forward and struck him in the back, knocking him to the ground. He attempted to roll out of the way, but the 77,000-pound truck rolled over his body and came to rest on top of him. His body was not found until the next morning, when a facility manager noticed the truck’s door ajar and went to investigate. The manager observed the vehicle on top of the victim and contacted emergency services, who pronounced the victim dead.

To help prevent similar incidents:

• Commercial carriers should implement a rollaway prevention procedure.
• Commercial carriers should equip company trucks with rollaway prevention technology.
• Administrative controls such as warning signs should be implemented to remind drivers to set brakes.